Military contingents marching on Rajpath at the Republic Day parade on Thursday (Express photo)

India celebrates its 68th Republic Day today. The parade proceedings at Rajpath, showcasing the country’s military might and achievements in a range of areas, have concluded with the fly-past by the Indian Air Force. Earlier at the parade, various military contingents along with tableau by state governments and central government departments marched on Rajpath.

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Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, crown prince of Abu Dhabi and son of the UAE’s founding president, was the chief guest at the parade this year as he joins prime minister Narendra Modi and president Pranab Mukherjee for the occasion.

The highlight of this year’s parade included a 179-member military contingent of UAE marching on the Rajpath and a contingent of the elite National Security Guard, also known as the Black Cats, participating in the parade for the first time.

A tight security blanket was thrown around the national capital as the Delhi Police and paramilitary personnel kept a tight vigil on the parade. The central and New Delhi region had nearly 60,000 personnel from Delhi Police and paramilitary forces guarding every nook and corner.